Thursday, 7 January 2010

These Wretched Winter Storms!

The iron railway bridge over Scotland’s River Tay has collapsed in a severe storm as a passenger train rolled across. The train plunged into the boiling river, killing everyone on board.

The lattice girder bridge, designed by highly regarded railway engineer Sir Thomas Bouch, crossed the Firth of Tay between Dundee and Leuchars. It was built on the cheap, which turned out to be a hallmark (and a selling point) of Bouch’s work. The North British Railway, which commissioned the 2-mile-long bridge, was hewing to a tight budget, and Bouch was considered a master of the form.Since buying prefabricated sections from established foundries was out of the question, the resourceful Bouch used iron produced in his own hastily constructed foundry. The quality was poor and the casting uneven. Additionally, Bouch didn’t bother calculating wind loads, even after altering his original design to include girders longer than 200 feet.

Demetrius - Timo Shemko's theorems circa late 1700 were used and still are on many marine structures. Including stability factors on marine platforms. He was eons ahead of his time.

I hate to say this but travelling over the utility Tay bridge has none of the adventure built into the Forth. While integrity should never be sacrificed on style; style shouldn't be ignored in favour of vapid utility.

OR's style of post is different to mine Stewart. I'm surprised he hasn't responded to you but I know he had quite a fall of snow yesterday and lives in a rural area. Possibly he's been on the end of a shovel for hours.